On the eve of the Vilnius NATO Summit, Sergei Vakarin joined the international conference “Ukraine and NATO on the eve of the Vilnius summit: from support through victory to membership” at the Diplomatic Academy. The speakers included:
Oleksiy Danilov, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine
Ihor Zhovkva, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine
Yevhen Perebyinis, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine
Volodymyr Gavrylov, Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine
General Ben Hodges, Commander of the US Ground Forces in Europe (2014-2017), USA
Pavlo Grod, President of the Ukrainian World Congress (UWC).
Oleksiy Danilov mentioned that responsible politicians in the world should take responsibility for what will happen between now and the end of the process of the collapse of the Russian Federation, the last empire.
Ihor Zhovkva emphasized two important criteria for the Alliance: shared democratic values and contribution to Euro-Atlantic security. Ukraine meets both criteria.
Despite the impossibility of Ukraine joining NATO during the war, the Vilnius Summit can be considered a success if the allies take a decisive step towards a clear algorithm that will show how and when Ukraine will become a NATO member, said Yevhen Perebyinis. De facto Ukraine is already a member of NATO and effectively defends its eastern flank.
At the end of the conference, Sergei Vakarin held an online conversation with General Ben Hodges.
